Review
of Ranna's®Essence of Memory

Eastern
art is regularly explored by Western artists, quite often clumsily and
half-heartedly. Ranna-Lesley Lachlan's current exhibition at Pinnacles
Gallery clearly demonstrates that she is an artist extremely skilled
in the use of other philosophies and artforms in her own art practice.
Essence of Memory: Unspoken Territory and the Kami Way is an
exhibition of recent work by Lachlan specifically dealing with Indian
and Japanese art and philosophies.

The
"Black" works use a style of calligraphy developed by Lachlan whilst
living in Japan called Ei-shodou (literally meaning English and masterful
calligraphy). The works transcribe Indian verses on silk [crystal]
organza and at first seem totally unintelligible, like ancient Japanese
calligraphy or pure abstract painting.

On
peering closer one can see familiar letters and words emerging, forcing
the viewer to contemplate. This is a show where you should take the
time to sit down and think. It is not a show that jumps out with its
meaning or basic visual representation.

This
contemplation is aided by the artist's use of the kucheng. A Chinese
musical instrument that is used as a bridge to bring together the Indian
and Japanese elements of the show. Specifically this relates to Buddhism
being taken from India to China, then from China to Japan along with
other elements of Chinese culture.

The
Japanese presence is shown in the "White" works that have been produced
by arranging crumpled up pages of a Townsville telephone directory.
As [Ranna] Lachlan is soon to leave these shores for the United States,
they hold particular meaning in dealing with her memories of Townsville.
By disposing of an effective means of communication she seems to be
ridding herself of connections to Townsville.

The
"White" works are visually pensive and calming, however, the calligraphic
messages performed in the artist's Ei-shodou calligraphy method are
harsh statements about negative human traits such as malice and slander.
In the piece titled Henken (Prejudice) the phrase states:

Take
the log out of your own eye ... you know the rest:
the 'other' is us."

Whilst
tellingly the final work in the show, sadly Lachlan's last exhibition
in Townsville, is the piece entitled Put it to Bed and Leave (I)
(Culmination)...